From fairness creams and shampoos to branded salons; HLL to see more competition from CavinKare

Chennai based CavinKare, the creator of Nyle, Meera, Chik, Fairever and Spinz, is now working towards popularizing their branded hair and skincare clinics all across Chennai. Since the opening of 'Greenie' [now renamed 'Green Trends'] their salon for men in May 2001, there have been a women's parlor and a family parlor. However a month ago they opened a new parlor 'Fyne Cut', that caters to the SEC segment of society.

According to Sanjay Gupta, the Business Head of 'Trends in Vogue', that addresses the retail business for CavinKare, "Green Trends though cheaper than a parlor in the Taj, was targeting the SEC A&B segment. Being an aspirational brand for the SEC C segment, we decided to start 'Fyne Cut' for them, as it could be finer option in terms of price and haircutting."

He specified however that to prevent the possibility of 'Fyne Cut' eating into the share of 'Green Trends', the parlors would never be located in the same areas. He said, "Differentiation between the two will exist only in terms of the services we provide. While a pedicures, manicures and hair streaking may be available in 'Green Trends', it will not be there in a 'Fyne Cut'".

Being region specific at the moment not much is being spent on advertising on a large scale. Apart from ads in the Anna Nagar Times, much of the focus is on providing offers that would interest prospective consumers. Explains Sanjay Gupta, "The idea was to get people to indulge, and with our offers it became possible. So a man who came in for a haircut, also thought of getting a massage at a discount. And why not, when you have a cheaper, more hygienic and natural option".

When asked if this would threaten HLL in anyway, with Lakme being the only other branded salon Gupta replied, "Lakme is a big brand for women. Despite their unisex parlors in the Taj, there is this mindset of it being a woman's parlour. We are different not because we have parlors for men too, but because we also have family parlor where trained professionals cater skin and hair's needs of women, men and children". He also added that since the market was so huge, Lakme was no threat.

By the end of this financial year, CavinKare hopes to open 13 parlors; 10 'Green Trends' and 3 Fyne Cuts. Gupta revealed that after popularizing these parlors in Chennai, they plan to move beyond.